About Ellison Travel & Tours

Our beginnings, our growth, our history.

Our beginnings…

In 1980 Doug Ellison, President and CEO of Ellison Travel & Tours, opened his travel company in a small basement office in the Exeter Town Hall with 2 employees. Today, we employ over 80 people in 6 locations, Exeter, London, North Vancouver, Ottawa, Halifax and Toronto. Prior to opening Ellison Travel & Tours, Doug spent 14 years in education at the high school level, 13 of those years at South Huron DHS in Exeter. As a teacher, he organized school trips for students which sparked his interest in travel and he has never looked back. Ellison Travel & Tours is one of the largest Canadian owned travel agencies in Canada yet has all the advantages of a small-town business: friendly, personal attention, long-serving employees and a superior level of expertise and service.

Exeter

Toronto

North Vancouver

Ottawa

Halifax

London

Our growth…

Customized tour planning for adult special interest groups and student groups is our specialty! Our tour planners are experienced and well-travelled, having personally visited many of the locations we plan tours to worldwide. We have flown with the airlines, stayed in the hotels, eaten at the restaurants and visited the attractions in order to better assist you with your travel planning. Wherever you want to go, whatever your interest is, we work with you to design your tour… your way.

The Vacation & Cruises department, operating out of all three locations, has experienced counsellors who are constantly upgrading their travel knowledge. We personally inspect the airlines, hotels, resorts and attractions so we can better assist you and recommend the cruise, sun holiday, flight, hotel, car rental or tourist attraction to fit your perfect holiday.

Our Corporate Travel department assists business travellers with flights, accommodation and car rentals to destinations around the world plus handle arrangements for incentive travel and meeting planning for corporate groups. Your time is valuable! We know travel – let us take the stress out of it – it’s what we do!

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Today, we have over 80+ employees working across Canada!

Our mission…

Creating memories that last …

Our goal is to provide you with travel memories that will enrich your life. Remember how you gasped with wonder at the Pyramids in Egypt, the feeling of pure joy as you watched a herd of elephants bathe a newborn calf or the adrenaline rush you felt as you gazed at the valley below after your hike to the top of Machu Picchu? The world is out there and is yours to discover. Let us help you find your memories while minimizing your footprint on our precious planet!

Our commitment…

The Terry Fox Run is an annual event at Ellison Travel since Doug organized the first run in Exeter in 1982. Ellison is proud to support the Terry Fox Foundation in its ongoing work to fund innovative and progressive cancer research programs and each year Ellison employees from coast to coast lace up to join the run, all with the common goal to “make cancer history”.

Free the Children & Me to We…children helping children through education, is a charitable and educational partner of Ellison Travel that empowers youth to remove barriers that prevent them from being active local and global citizens. Ellison Travel & Tours supports Free the Children and Me to We in their commitment to provide access to education for children worldwide.

The Stephen Lewis Foundation (SLF) supports community-level organizations that are turning the tide of HIV/AIDS in Africa by providing care and support to women, orphans, grandmothers and people living with HIV and AIDS. Ellison Travel & Tours has sponsored flights for a children’s choir from Africa to perform in London, ON while on tour in North America to create awareness and we continue to participate in other local fundraising projects in support of the Stephen Lewis Foundation.

One Care Home and Community Support Services is a leading not-for-profit health care agency providing quality community support services, supportive housing services in Huron County and personal support/homemaking in Huron and Perth Counties and surrounding areas. Ellison Travel & Tours’ employees share a Christmas tradition of raising funds at our annual Christmas party in support of One Care.

Heart and Stroke Big Bike Ride involves 1 bike with 30 seats for a 20 minute ride covering 2 kms. In June 2015, we filled a bike with Ellison Travel employees and rode the Big Bike through Exeter to raise over $4500 for Heart & Stroke Foundation.

Ellison Travel & Tours’ Annual Charity Golf Classic began in 1997 and since has raised over $150,000 for charities both local and national including Huron Country Playhouse/Blyth Festival/Ausable Bayfield Conservation Area/Community Living/London Regional Cancer Centre/Children’s Health Foundation/Make-A-Wish Foundation/2001 Summer Games/Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of Canada/Canadian Cancer Society/Relay For Life/Parkinson Foundation of Canada/Huntington Society of Canada/MS Society of Canada/Haiti Relief/Habitat for Humanity/Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. In 2016, our 20th annual tournament supported the Huntington Society, Me to We and two local Syrian refugee families.

Ellison Travel’s community support extends to South Huron Hospital Campaign/Goderich Medical Clinic/Optimist Club/Kinsmen/Lions Club/Rotary/Big Brothers & Big Sisters/Midwestern Adult Day Centre/Foundation for Education/Goderich Tornado Relief/Bach Festival of Canada, to name a few.

In 2015, Ellison Travel & Tours celebrated 35 years in travel and as a thank you to our clients and suppliers we held a gala event and fundraising auction where $17,000 was raised for two very worthwhile charities – Children’s Health Foundation, London and Plan Canada Because I am a Girl. Each year, Plan Canada directs Send a Girl to School donations towards different countries and education projects, according to most urgent need. in 2015 Plan’s Send a Girl to School gifts impacted the lives of girls across Egypt, South Sudan, and Burkina Faso. Our $8,500 donation was matched by the Canadian Government 5:1 for a total value of $51,000. The charitable connection to the Ellison 35th anniversary hasn’t stopped there. Throughout the entire 2015/2016 year, Ellison Travel will donated $1 for every person who travels in our estimated 600 group tours. We also donated to three charities: Habitat for Humanity International, the Juno Beach Foundation and Me to We … $35,000 to celebrate 35 years

Our Youth – Our Future

Ellison Travel awards four $500 student scholarships for post-secondary education through a contest whereby secondary students in their final year of high school submit a photo from a tour they have travelled on with Ellison Travel.

Ellison Travel & Tours has been sending music groups to MusicFest Canada Nationals since 1992 and as such, recognize the value of promoting music and arts as part of a well-rounded education. MusicFest Canada provides an exceptional opportunity for young musicians and Ellison Travel & Tours, as the official housing coordinator is proud to sponsor this outstanding festival in order to make it affordable for all of Canada’s youth. In addition, Ellison Travel sponsors the Ellison Canadian Honour Choir and awards two $500 scholarships to deserving musicians.

The SYTA Youth Foundation provides student/youth financial resources and programming through travel experiences that impact the lives of tomorrow’s global citizens. The purpose of the Foundation is to design and implement programs that “Give Something Back” to student and youth travellers. The goal is simple – to raise money for students to travel with their schools or youth organizations. Ellison Travel & Tours is proud to be a founding sponsor.

Mary Lynn Higgins Youth Fund provides travel scholarships to students at the elementary and secondary school level. These scholarships are awarded to students in good standing who would otherwise not be able to travel with their class due to financial restrictions. 95% of the recipients are under the age of 13 and due to circumstances out of their control, the financial resources for their educational school trip are not available. They are students who are dedicated in school, are active in fundraising efforts and volunteer in the school community. Sponsoring these students to attend their class trip provides inclusion and boosts self-esteem ensuring equality in education beyond the classroom. Ellison Travel & Tours is proud to be a charter sponsor.

Sustainable Travel

Ellison Travel is committed to sustainable travel, business and community. As a travel company we are aware that our business has a powerful impact on the lives and outlook of not only our clients, but also the areas of the world that they visit and we are dedicated to ensuring that while our clients’ travel needs are met, we are also giving back to the global community. We are dedicated to the fight against global warming and minimizing our overall footprint on the environment. We understand that people are meant to explore and enjoy the freedom to discover and experience a new place and by working together, we can continue to satisfy our natural curiosity for a foreign land and visit our favourite corners of the world.

We wear our “green”proudly! Whether it be recycling paper and plastic, carpooling to work or video conferencing for our meetings, we are continually looking for new ways to “green” our work environment as part of our commitment to sustainable business practices. Ellison Travel’s “Green Team” is a team of employees and managers that lead, motivate, assess and make recommendations. Our employees and clients are encouraged to give back to the environment and support sustainable travel initiatives through various environmental organizations.

Our Team

The success of this global company is due in part to Doug’s investment in his team. Ellison Travel employees are provided with quality training and support and as a result are a team of dedicated and talented individuals who listening carefully to their clients and develop solutions that meet or exceed customer expectations. Travel to destinations where we plan tours to is an essential element of our training. Our travel consultants and group planners visit parts of the world unknown by many. As technology is constantly evolving, so is the team at Ellison, updating our skills and knowledge to keep up with the ever-changing travel industry and to better our service to you, our valued clients. To a large extent it is Doug’s dedication, energy and commitment to the business he loves that inspires the Ellison Travel team to achieve in a fast-paced and challenging market.